Agent of the Shinigami - The Novel
by SarahAndIchigo
Summary: What would Bleach look like if it was written as a novel? My take on Bleach all the way from the beginning to just before the gang get to the Soul Society. First fic so please review! Ichigo Kurasaki, a lanky teenager living in Kurakara Town encounters Rukia, a Soul Reaper and finds himself caught up in her mission and his Soul Reaper self.
1. Prologue

**Bleach: Agent of the Shinigami**

**Prologue**

_We stand in awe before _

_That which cannot be seen_

_And we respect with every fiber of _

_That which cannot be explained_

A solitary figure stands erect before the full moon, features stretched into a mask of driven purpose, violet eyes glinting in the moonlight. Short dark hair cascades down the slender shoulders, framing the face; one lone strand hangs between her eyes.

'_I sense strong spirit energy close by…' _

Leaping over the fence, the stranger disappears.

_And so fell the sword of fate..._


	2. Chapter 1: The Day I Became a Shinigami

**AN:-** This is just my first chapter :) Basically, just half of episode one because it would be too long if I wrote the whole 20 minutes as a chapter. Hope you like it, please review!

**Chapter 1: The Day I Became a _Shinigami_**

**_Part 1_**

'You got a death wish, pal? Nobody jumps my boys for no reason and lives to tell about it!'

The orange-haired youth simply grunted in response.

'That's all you got to say?' the older man shouted indignantly, pairing his words with a blow towards the youth.

His fist didn't connect, quick as a flash, the youth kicked the man's face, still not wiping that casual smirk off his face. His legs proceeded to kick the older man, on the ground now. 'His boys' were reduced to watching the abuse of their leader, too afraid to move an inch to help, whimpering among themselves in fear.

After sinking the man's face into the ground, the youth finally spoke, 'Now listen up, you scum! You see that?' shouting at the trembling men, as he pointed to a broken vase of flowers, lying on the ground. The men gaped.

'First question: What do you think that is? You, the one in the middle, answer!' the youth raged on. The chosen man murmured, 'Wait, you talking to m-me? I g-guess someone left those flowers for some kid who got killed here,'

'CORRECT!' the youth roared with a rewarding kick to the chin, knocking the quivering man to the ground. Surveying the remaining men, he continued, 'now the next question: that vase over there, why is it lying on its side?' Hastily, one of the men stuttered, 'I g-guess one of us knocked it over w-when we were s-skating through here,' his companion nodding vigorously, 'we didn't- '

The youth's fists sent both men spinning towards the ground before they could finish stammering. 'You guys catch on fast,' he smirked at the men on the ground before thundering 'NOW GO AND APOLOGISE OR THE NEXT TIME THE FLOWERS WILL BE FOR YOU!'

The terrified men scampered away, shouting, leaving the youth alone under the sun of an afternoon day. 'There, that ought to keep those punks from showing their ugly faces around here,' he muttered to himself, turning to leave. His gray school uniform was spotless despite all the fighting he had just done. Noticing the little girl with the insubstantial body floating in front of him, he said, 'Sorry about all that, I'll bring you by some new flowers tomorrow.'

'Thank you for coming to my defense,' she smiled sadly, 'I think now I'll finally be able to rest peacefully.' Picking up the broken vase of flowers, the boy said, 'No problem. That was the least I could do, after all, you deserve to rest in peace.'

He sauntered away from her, his orange hair flaming in the sun. The little girl remained smiling as she slowly faded away until she was no more to be seen under the radiance of the sinking sun.

* * *

_'My name is Ichigo Kurasaki. I'm fifteen years old, so I'm a high school student. My family runs a medical clinic here in town. Maybe its because we're entrusted with the lives of the living, not sure, but for as long as I can remember, I've been able to see the souls of the dearly departed.'_

Ichigo walked home down the street and went inside his house. 'I'm home!' he called out.

His arrival was rewarded with a sharp kick to the chin, taking Ichigo entirely by surprise. 'Don't let your guard down!' Dad shouted as he slumped to the floor, 'Always stay alert when you enter a room and you're late for dinner again.'

Picking himself up from the ground, Ichigo growled, 'Come on! Is that any way to welcome your son after he just risked his life to help a spirit find peace?'

Dad growled back, 'Silence! Oh, so its the ghost's fault now, is it? I suppose it was the ghost that left your room a mess,' pushing his forehead against his son's, 'When are you gonna show some discipline? Just because you see ghosts and I don't!' Temper rising, Ichigo struck his father and it turned into a squabble.

Meanwhile, Karin was casually eating her food while Yuzu, her twin, couldn't bear to see father and son fighting, called, 'Hey! Stop the fighting, you two. Come over here and eat your dinner.'

Karin intervened, 'Let 'em fight,' extending her plate, 'more rice for me!'

Yuzu frowned, 'That's not very nice, Karin.' She was the gentler and sweeter of the pair.

As Dad tried landing another punch, Ichigo kicked him aside and shouted,'I gotta tell you Dad, for any normal healthy high school kid, a 7 o'clock curfew is totally uncool!'

Karin, serenely eating, said,'Ichigo, speaking of uncool, you have a new one.' At the mention of her words, Ichigo caught sight of another spirit, this time a middle-aged man with glasses and a lab coat.

Annoyed, he snapped at it, 'How long have _you _been there? Take a hike, will ya?' swatting at the pesky ghost in vain, 'you damn pest!'

Karin sighed,'I'm so done,' watching her brother and the ghost fighting for territory dominance. 'Poor Ichigo. Dad or ghost, its always something.'

Yuzu, the only Kurasaki child blind to spirits, watched the fight with excitement,'I think Ichigo's kinda lucky to be able to see ghosts!' Her brown eyes scanned the scene in front of her desperately for any trace of spirits, 'I can sorta sense their presence sometimes but that's about it.'

Her sister snorted,'I don't see what the big deal is with ghosts, I don't even believe in them.'

Yuzu gasped,'Karin! I don't get how you can say something like that! I thought you had the power to see spirits too!'

Karin shrugged,'I'm in permanent denial. Just seeing them doesn't make me believe in them,' as Yuzu stared in astonishment. The unwanted spirit muttered,'That's really cold...'

'Like my dinner,' Ichigo muttered, taking a momentary break from Whack-the-Ghost. Taking his chance, Dad punched his son in the face, 'You let your guard down!'

Now captured in his father's hold, Ichigo was losing my patience, sending Dad spinning with his fist and got up. Dad, never one to back out, tried again to unsuccessfully lock his son down. Pushing him aside, Ichigo muttered,'Forget about dinner! I'm going to my room.' He stormed into his room, ignoring Yuzo's pleas to stay and eat.

Karin snorted sarcastically soon after her brother left,'You sure have a way with kids, don't you?' as Dad tried his best to look innocent.

Tossing his school bag onto a nearby chair, Ichigo sprawled on his bed. The voices of his family leaked into his rooms through the walls separating them.

_'Ichigo is kinda having a rough time right now_.' _'Yeah, he said he's seen more spirits lately than ever before.' 'WHAT? Why would he talk about these things to you two instead of coming to his own dad?! That doesn't make sense!' 'Sure it does. For one thing, you're over forty and for another, emotionally, you're still at a pre-school level, Dad. Admit it.' 'Ohh, my dear wife! Maybe its because they're hitting puberty, but my daughters are being so cold to me! What do I do? What do I do?' 'Well, for starters, you might wanna take down that poster...'_

* * *

_'The incident that occurred outside Karukara Station just after 7:30 AM as the morning commute was just getting into full swing. Witnesses report hearing a loud crash and feeling the ground shake beneath their feet. The entire area has been crossed off. Further details...' _stated the news channel as Karin sat at the table drinking tea the next morning.

Just then, her brother Ichigo walked in, muttering a hey.

'Good morning, Ichigo!' Yuzo said happily, oozing with her usual morning freshness.

''Morning,' he said as he glanced at his younger sisters,'Where's Dad?'

'Early meeting, said he would be late tonight too,' Karin replied as Ichigo grabbed some toast straight off the toaster.

'Again, huh?' Ichigo muttered. Suddenly noticing the tiny television screen in the corner, he stared. Yuzo, noticing her brother's attention, asked, 'Something bad happen?' Ignoring her, with the bread still in his mouth, Ichigo muttered again, 'That's near here...'

Later that day, Ichigo walked past the exact site of the news report he had seen earlier in the day. Yellow police tape was completely surrounding the area as the police investigated the scene. Still in his uniform, carrying the vase of flowers he has promised the spirit girl he met before, Ichigo ignored the curious site behind him.

He neared the spot where he had last seen the spirit girl, but she was nowhere to be seen. 'Hello? Hello?' he called out, looking around him for any sign of her. 'She ought to have been here,' he thought, 'after all I did promise her flowers.' Ears perking suddenly to a strange noise to his rear, Ichigo stiffened. Following his instincts, he ran towards the sound he had heard.

As he ran past countless people on the street, most of them seemed oblivious to the roar enveloping them, occupied in their daily routines. But there were a few who stopped in their tracks and stiffened as if they had heard the mysterious sound too. Thinking nothing of it, Ichigo ran forward.

Suddenly, a blast ripped through the air as a part of the city exploded, spraying havoc and chaos. People ran wherever their legs could carry them, shouting hysterically all the way. A part of the ringing clamor, a screeching sound filled the air, not unlike the sound of running nails harshly down a chalkboard. To those who were courageous enough to look back, they would have seen giant scratch marks on the walls, like an enormous invisible hand tearing away downtown Karakura Town. As people ran for their lives away from the turmoil, an adolescent boy pushed himself against the rising tide of the relentless crowd, desperate to reach the center. Finally reaching his destination, Ichigo was thrown back by the force of the dust that rose from the broken remains of the buildings. Shielding his eyes, he searched desperately for something, anything, to explain the disaster the second before.

And from the falling dust, Ichigo could make out features of something so...

His heart stopped.

He didn't know how long he stood there, staring at it. Trying to make sense of what his eyes refused to believe, what his mind would not comprehend. What was that staring back at him? Was it really standing there in front of him? It was unlike anything he'd ever seen, not even those 'ghosts' lingering around this town, and dread trickled down his spine. It wore a white menacing mask on its face, roaring. 'What the hell's _that_?!' Ichigo exclaimed in disbelief.

The dust began to clear, revealing the monster's true nature; it looked like a sinister super-sized ant with six legs crushing Karukara Town wherever they landed. Ichigo gaped as another figure faded into appearance. It was that spirit-girl he was looking for earlier! She was running for her life away from the insect predator that was chasing her. Sensing the imminent danger, Ichigo scampered away as well, yelling out to the girl to run faster. The six-legged beast gave chase to his prey, leering maliciously.

Out of breath and terrified, the dead girl asked,'What is that thing?'

Ichigo shot a quick glance at her and answered, 'I don't know,' just as she stumbled with a yelp and fell to the ground. Looking over his shoulder at the girl, Ichigo yelled, 'Come on! We've gotta move!' He retreated a few steps to help her as the demon creature loomed over them, his shadow enveloping both of its prey. Daring to glance up, Ichigo saw the monster flash its gigantic pincers with glee and open its mouth, revealing rows of sharp teeth. There seemed to be a strange hole in the creature's abdomen that Ichigo was too terrified to even notice. Overcome with terror, Ichigo slumped next to the girl, watching, waiting for the pincers to strike flesh. A black ethereal butterfly floated lazily in front of him, such a strange sight, that Ichigo stared at it in wonder. It was so different and so magical somehow and what in the world was it doing here anyway, in the midst of all this turmoil? Momentarily distracted, Ichigo almost missed it.

A figure clad in black descended in front of him, in what seemed like slow motion. Hand on hilt, the figure unsheathed her sword in mid-air and slashed a full arc around her in a swirl of white light as blood exploded from the menacing mask of the monster- all in the blink of an eye. Finally landing on the ground gracefully, the figure leaped instantaneously again, sword held high over her head. She leaped impossibly high, and as the monster stumbled around blindly, slashed it in half with ease. She landed again, as Ichigo stared at the monster which was fading away from its legs and disappearing into nothingness.

The anonymous savior sheathed her glinting sword, casting Ichigo an indifferent glance behind her shoulder. Ichigo gawked in astonishment, it was a woman! A petite woman, or maybe a girl, with mysterious violet eyes he had never seen before and short coal-black hair cascading in waves down her shoulders. Her eyes weren't kind, not even acknowledging, she just regarded him as a pitiful undeserving insect that had to be saved. Ichigo wasn't quite sure what he felt about that, but he knew that she had saved his life, for whatever reasons she had. He stared at her attire, what was she wearing? Some sort of long black kimono that didn't even seem her size, with some random threatening sword poking out of her hip. Who did she think she was anyway, falling from the sky like that? That was some nerve she had, alright.

To his surprise, the woman casually sauntered away from him wordlessly.'Hey, hold on!' Ichigo shouted at the empty space in front of him as downtown Karakura Town started to recover its noise and ignorance. Desperate questions filled the air as people gathered around the bewildered boy. 'The sidewalk's burnt, there must have been another explosion!' someone observed. Ichigo still couldn't believe what had just happened, first that scary creature, then that cold mysterious woman. Just what the hell was going on here?

* * *

That night, Ichigo couldn't drift to sleep. His mind kept wandering to those terrible minutes: just what was that thing that chased them so relentlessly? Did he really see it? What did it want here anyway? And, what about that woman? What was she? She can't have been human, falling from the sky and waving her scary sword around, right? And why did she save him? His thoughts twirled around his head, squeezing it until it hurt. Still no sleep.

Contemplating counting that herd of sheep that everyone did to get sleepy, Ichigo stared out at the full moon from his window, trying hard not to wander back to his thoughts. All of a sudden, a strange shadow appeared in front of the moon. It wasn't a shadow; it was the same butterfly he had seen earlier! What was it doing here? It floated lazily through the window and Ichigo had a strange sense of foreboding overcome him. Before he had time to think about it, a second figure followed the butterfly in through the window.

Stepping onto his desk, it walked into his room. Shocked and terrified, Ichigo sat up on his bed and gawked at the intruder. 'What the hell are you doing here?' Ichigo demanded. The intruder ignored him, concentrating intensely on its thoughts. It hadn't even acknowledged his presence yet. Solemnly, it touched the hilt of its sword.

Terrified, Ichigo scampered into the corner in fear, 'Put that thing away! You're not slicing me up!' he yelled. Who did it think it was, sliding into his room through the window, that wacko? It wasn't gonna wave its stupid sword around in here either!

It ignored him again, still unaware of his presence. Ichigo was getting annoyed now, what kind of loser was this dude? It was standing in the middle of the room, hand on hilt, like some sort of failed superhero. 'Hey!' he yelled for its attention. Was this a joke?

To his increasing annoyance, it mumbled quietly, 'It's getting closer, I feel it,' reaching for its sword just as Ichigo decided he had had enough of its crap and kicked it hard on the back. 'WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT DO YOU WANT?' Ichigo screeched. What the hell was up with this idiot? He hastily turned on the light to see who this imbecile thought he was. 'IF YOU THINK YOU'RE A BURGLAR, YOU'RE NOT A VERY GOOD ONE! FOR STARTERS, YOU SHOULDN'T TALK TO YOURSELF!' he shouted as it lay there on the floor.

Slowly, the intruder turned around in surprise and shock, revealing its face. It was that woman that saved his life before! She was back, looking even wackier than before with a ridiculous expression on her face to match her goth outfit. What the heck was _she_ doing here? 'You kicked me?!' she exclaimed in disbelief. Of course he did, what was wrong with her? 'But I can't be seen by ordinary humans! Are you saying you can see me?!' she gaped at him. Ichigo mentally classified her as a burglar in severe need of mental therapy.

Changing his tone of his voice, (after all, the poor thing needed help) he muttered, 'Well, considering that was my foot that I planted in your behind, you tell me.'

She got up on her feet, with that ridiculous incredulous face of hers, staring up at him. Recognition flashed across her face, 'You're the one that I saw in town earlier, I remember!'

She was getting crazier by the second. 'Boy, nothing gets by you,' he muttered sarcastically, but secretly he was surprised she had remembered him, even after that horrible look she had given after saving him. But everyone remembered him anyway, with his rare shock of orange hair, so why was he so pleased with her recognition?

'How very strange,' she muttered as she sized him up and touched his chin, curiously examining his facial features. Allowing her a second of scrutinizing, as she continued, 'You look normal, but you must be defective in some way...'

Defective? _She_ was the one that was defective, strolling in through people's windows, dressing up like some traditional hag and talking to herself! What was up with her? Harshly, he snapped her hand away, and growled,'I'll show you defective!' and struck a bad kick at her, which she dodged. He had forgotten for a minute that this wasn't his father that was insulting him, it was some random demented girl. He shouldn't have tried to hurt her like that, she was probably harmless under her craziness, the nice boy inside of him reasoned.

Underestimating her was a mistake; the crazy woman leaped up onto his head and pushed off like some lame Mario game character, plummeting Ichigo to the floor of his own bedroom. Crazy or not, he had had enough of her and spat at her savagely, 'Who are you?'

'You want to know?' she half-snorted, condescending. Ichigo was surprised at how old her voice sounded, he had thought she was 13 or at the very most his own age. Her voice was so mature, so adult, he almost felt shameful for his behavior before remembering it was _her_ that had broken into his room in the first place! Now angry, he waited impatiently for this mad-girl to explain herself. She turned around, short hair swishing around her, violet eyes glinting. They were so deep, so endless; he couldn't tell what she was going to say next.

'Then I'll tell you,' she said dramatically, arrogant, '_I'm a soul reaper..._'

* * *

Meanwhile, in a dark part of Karakura Town, a young girl is running across the empty streets, illuminated by the moonlight. On closer inspection, she is in fact a spirit girl running away from something, her brown hair swishing in the wind. She finally pauses to take a breath, hiding behind a lamp-post. 'Oh, no, not again...' she mutters, anxiety and fear etched across her face. As she stares at the dark and sinister street in front of her, a loud crackling sound is heard as multiple telephone wires are torn apart on the side of the road. As the electricity crackles, a glimpse of a creature can be seen as the current flows through it. It is gigantic with sturdy strong limbs and built like a natural hunter, its form momentarily visible. When the current reaches the ground, the creature is rendered invisible again. The girl, gaping at the monster in front of her, attempts to run farther away, never too ahead of her predator. Tell-tale gigantic deep footprints mark the sidewalk as an invisible giant drags itself across Karakura Town in pursuit of a spirit…


	3. Chapter 2: The Day I Became a Shinigami

**A/N: **Guys, stop being mean. Scroll down and write me a review! :'(

**Chapter 2: The Day I became a Shinigami  
**

**Part 2**

Ichigo is sitting in his room, lights on, at his desk, with a psychotic stranger on the floor, claiming she's some soul eater or something like that - all at 3 AM. He could have been in bed, enjoying some peace, but instead he has to face this stupid girl in his uniform (which he didn't take off, so that's not really her fault, to be honest) who broke into his room, in the middle of the night.

"Alright, so you're something called a soul reaper?" Ichigo asked after listening to her ridiculous explanation of what she was doing sneaking into his room.

She nodded. Her face was set and her mad violet eyes were hard.

"And you're telling me that you're sent here on a mission by something called the Soul Society?" he inquired, still refusing to look at her and her unnatural eyes. Frankly, they creeped him out along with her too-old voice and scary self-confidence. How could someone get under his skin like that? He didn't even know her name, yet he was sitting here having a chat with her in the middle of the night! Her name was probably something totally lame like Lucy or Prudence, or maybe even Martha. He shuddered; he wasn't planning on asking her name after this five minutes of sit-with-a-psycho-and-listen-to-her-lies was over, which would be quick.

The girl nodded. Ichigo continued, "To deal with demons like the one we saw on the street today?"

She nodded. "Which was chasing after that girl's soul?" Ichigo carried on relentlessly. Another nod.

"That's all believable to me," Ichigo said neutrally before shouting, "ALONG WITH FLYING PIGS AND THE TOOTH FAIRY!" flipping the table in front of him over to demonstrate his frustration. The girl looked at him with irritation; he was being such a kid, why couldn't he believe it? She was getting fed up with this stubborn carrot-top.

"How dare you? Why wouldn't you believe in soul reapers when you just admitted you can see spirits?!" she growled, indignant. What was wrong with this child, why was he so pig-headed?

Ichigo, irritated, stood up to his full height. "I've never seen or heard of soul reapers before and frankly, your whole story is just too incredible. I don't believe in anything I can't see," he said, backing up his point, showing her some attitude.

The girl, irritated as well, stood up too, barely reaching Ichigo's shoulders. He felt like smirking with satisfaction at this but there was still something intimidating about an almost five feet woman with a scary sword dangling around her hips. Wait-what? What was intimidating about her again? Right now, she was glaring at him with her maniacally purple ginormous eyes. And since when did he have to prove himself to her? When did he care about how tall people were and whatnot? It was probably the lack of sleep that was making him think weird. He closed his eyes, why did _she_ have to sneak into _his _window? He could tell she was thinking the same thing with that exasperated and fiery look in her eyes. He had hurt her pride as a self-proclaimed soul reaper, eater, whatever and it was funny.

"Well, you see me, don't you?" she countered, bringing Ichigo out of his reverie. She had a point though he hated to admit it.

Eyes narrowed, Ichigo said, "Well, that's true and I'd agree with the fact that you're not human." He hated giving her a point and he saw how her violet eyes challenged him, daring. He wanted to challenge her too; there was something about her that made him want to prove himself. What was up with him today? And what was he doing here with her in this room in a staring contest at 3 AM? With Martha/Belinda or whatever? Annoyed at himself, for spending this much time with her, when all she obviously wanted was to waste it, Ichigo decided he had had enough of her stupid stories. Soul eaters, reapers, whatever could stay in the Soul Center, Society where they belonged. They had nothing to do with him. He was getting rid of this kid and that was that.

"Why don't you go play your soul reaper game somewhere else?" Ichigo sneered, "Okay, _little brat_?" pairing his condescending words with a demeaning rough pat of her head of dark hair. He smirked when he saw her teeth clench and she muttered, menacing, "I'm a brat, am I?"

Before Ichigo had time to confirm her doubt, the girl placed two fingers on her forehead and then held them in the air, shouting _"Bakudo #1, SAI!",_ as she slashed her fingers across his arm as searing pain shot through him. What the hell! His arm was forced behind his back and he couldn't move it! What the hell did this witch do? Ichigo slumped to the floor, arms still fixed awkwardly behind him in front of the now very tall, Soul Reaper or whatever that woman called herself.

"I can't move! What did you do to me?" Ichigo struggled against the invisible bonds holding his arms behind me.

He could hear the smirk in her voice as she answered him, "Paralysis. I've used what's called a _'Kido'_ on you; it's a high level incantation that only we soul reapers can cast." She sounded old, exclusive and malice crept into her voice as she continued, "It's useless to struggle against it, you're just wasting your energy." She snorted, her violet eyes hard with a hint of amused interest. Her words become harsher and full of scorn and Ichigo would have flinched if he were able to move. "I may seem young to you, but I've lived nearly ten of your lifetimes. I would kill you on the spot for your insults if it were not against my orders. So, _you, little brat_, be grateful!" Ichigo stared up at her from the floor and saw the purple fire in her eyes.

"You've got nerve," he said from the floor. He had to believe her now, right? She had somehow restrained his limbs and demeaned him all at once. And then there was something different about her, she had flared up, a burning match held near kerosene, she didn't try to hide the disdain, hatred for humans that was so obvious now. He had struck a nerve, he could tell.

She ignored him. "And now," she said decidedly, pulling out her sword from the sheath at her side. It had a traditional wooden hilt and it was very long, there was something about it that reminded Ichigo of ancient magic and relics. Why was she pulling out her sword? Didn't she say she was going to spare him? Before Ichigo could say anything, the girl held her sword high above her head, face determined, and brought it down...

Ichigo braced himself for the pain. But it never came.

"Ahh..."

Ichigo opened his eyes, awake and alive, searching for the source of the moans he had just heard. Turning his head around, still on the floor, he found it.

The girl's sword was never meant for him after all, it was for the poor pesky ghost that lingered around his house, the one with the lab coat, next to him. "It's that ghost from yesterday!" he exclaimed, worried. What was she doing to him? He was already dead, right?

The ghost stared back at the woman, whose sword had been stamped to his forehead, his eyes pleading, "No, please don't..." he muttered helplessly. "I don't want to be sent to the Underworld..." he kept repeating.

Ichigo watched, shocked, as the girl's face transformed into a smile, any trace of the malice and scorn wiped off. Her eyes were steady, comforting pools of liquid purple as she reassured the poor spirit, "You needn't worry, because you are bound for a better place - The Soul Society." Her voice shocked Ichigo even further; it was honey, dipped in warmth and care. She sounded so loving that he gawked at her open-mouthed, such a contrast to her voice just seconds before. She must have some personality issues or something, Ichigo concluded.

As he watched her, she pressed the hilt of her sword harder against the spirit's forehead and said softly, "There, your soul will be at peace." She removed the sword, revealing a glowing mark on the ghost's forehead, a stamp with strange symbols. Ichigo watched as it glowed brighter and brighter, wholly engulfing the translucent being in light, as the spirit slowly disintegrated as if being sunk into the floor. A black ethereal butterfly appeared from the same spot as if it was replacing the spirit's soul.

Ichigo stuttered in astonishment, "W-where did he go? What d-did you do with him?"

The woman simply sheathed her sword, lost in thought. Giving Ichigo a sideways glance on the floor, she said neutrally, "I sent his spirit to the Soul Society." Her eyes were tamer now and she regarded him with cold detachment. "It's one of the main responsibilities of a Soul Reaper. People here sometimes call it passing on." Ichigo stared at her, what else could this woman do? How powerful were the Soul Reapers now that he had to believe in them?

She continued to stare down at him and said, "Now, I'll explain to you why I'm here and I'll use small words so you can understand it." Ichigo glared at her, she was acting all mighty again and it was getting on his nerves. He glowered at her from the floor and waited for her oh-so-enlightening explanation. Eyes locked, the woman said, "There are two types of spirits in this world," reaching into her kimono to pull out something.

Ichigo's eyes widened in astonishment. What the hell was that? He stared at the paper she held up in front of him, her expression solemn as she continued, "The first kind are the normal spirits called Wholes. The ghosts that you see are usually this kind," pointing at an atrocious drawing of a bunny with a cheesy typical bunny smile and terribly drawn hearts around it. Apparently the smile and the hearts were supposed to indicate it was good. Sure enough, underneath the bunny was written, '_Wholes (Good Spirit)_'. Ichigo's eyes traveled to the right and he almost choked on thin air. This drawing was even lousier than the one before. It depicted another bunny, signature white, which was supposedly representing evil with its dodgy eyebrows; otherwise it was the same as the other bunny. The background was horribly colored black and some really lame lightning bolts dancing around behind the menacing rabbit. Underneath was written '_Hollow (Bad Spirit)_'. "The second kind are evil spirits know as Hollows," she continued dramatically, "The Hollows attack people living or dead in order to devour their souls. Any questions before I go on?" She asked, ruining the creepy mood.

"First of all," Ichigo asked, "Why do your drawings suck so bad?"

2 minutes later, Ichigo was still on the floor, bound, but now he had a flattering swirly mustache to go with his bewildered expression. "Aarrghh!" he exclaimed after the girl was done drawing on his face as revenge."You'll pay for this!" he screeched indignantly, struggling on the floor.

"Let us continue with our lesson, monsieur," she said, ignoring him, juggling the marker she had used on his face. She turned around to face him, her face serious again, "There are two main jobs for Soul Reapers: first to lead Wholes to the Soul Society through _'Konso'_ like I just did." Her drawings were there again to aid Ichigo's understanding process, which wasn't working because he wanted to rip them out of her hand and throw them out the window. Unfortunately, he was still bound by her spell, so he stared at the picture of the good bunny led by an ugly red arrow marked _'Konso'_ to the Soul Society, which was purple and had massive white flowers everywhere. If that was the Soul Society or Heaven or whatever, Ichigo didn't want to get anywhere near it. Ichigo focused on the second picture, where he was reintroduced to the Hollow bunny with the dodgy eyebrows (they kind of went along with his new mustache, now that you think about it) with an ugly purple cross over the bunny's vomit-inducing face. "Second, to exorcise the Hollows wherever we find them," the woman explained her confusing drawing.

"The hollow with the bulk body this afternoon, why was it chasing that girl?" Ichigo demanded. He needed answers and he wasn't going to waste his time analyzing her creepy drawings.

'That I don't know,' she said unhelpfully, "We have yet to fully understand what motivated the Hollows to do the things they do."

* * *

The spirit girl is still running, the Hollow is still chasing, and Karakura Town is still oblivious. She runs through countless alleyways, the Hollow hot on her trail. No one notices, no one cares. The girl trips and falls, her soul chain, attached to her stomach, clanking. The monster is too close now, she can run no farther. She lifts her head to see it right above her, a gasp of fear escaping her, eyes petrified. The monster reaches his black hand towards her and suddenly sniffs the air. "I can smell it," the Hollow's voice rumbles, unheard by the sleeping city, "An especially tasty soul is nearby..." The girl is forgotten as the Hollow stands up to its full height, still sniffing for new prey. "Along with a smell of a soul reaper!" it states with obvious delight. The girl watches as the Hollow thunders away, howling, in pursuit of better food...

* * *

"CRASH!"

Ichigo lifted his head up, stiffening at the sound, "What was that?!"

"One thing we do know, there is a second Hollow prowling nearby," the Soul Reaper stated, calmly.

"Then what the hell are you waiting for? Go out and kill it!" Ichigo snapped at her. What was she doing sitting here when there were Hollows lurking about and strange crashing noises?

"I would, but I can't seem to detect its location," she frowned, head lowered, seemingly embarrassed, "Usually, I have no trouble finding a Hollow that's close by. But here, it seems like my senses are being jammed by some powerful forc-"

"What are you, deaf?" Ichigo grunted, interrupting her. Despite all her strength and power, she was being so useless; he wanted to throw her out the window. She just sat there with a frown on her face, dark hair splayed over her shoulders, lost in thought. "There's something huge howling out there!" he exclaimed again, "That sound has to be a Hollow!" She was being so stupid, what kind of lame Soul Reaper was she? She just closed her eyes, much to Ichigo's increasing frustration.

Before he could throw the stupid Soul Reaper out the window along with her horrible drawings, she muttered, confused, "Something howling? What do you mean?" Ichigo stared at her, what was wrong with her? Couldn't she hear it?

Another howl thundered outside. The dark-haired Soul Reaper lifted her face, realization dawning on her. She had finally heard it and her blood froze. How could she not have sensed it earlier?! It was right outside the house by now! She got up quickly, hand on hilt, stance defensive, wide violet eyes scanning around her, while Ichigo was still a heap on the floor. "Now, I hear it! Definitely a Hollow!" she said, stating the obvious.

"That's what I've been telling you!" he growled at her. She didn't hear him, hair swishing, eyes dark, as she tried to track the Hollow's bearings.

"Aaaaaahhh!" a child cried out in pain close by. Ichigo's heart stopped. It sounded like...

"That's Yuzu!" he exclaimed. What happened to her? Was she okay? Was the Hollow here already? Ichigo struggled frantically with the _Kido_ binding him, as the Soul Reaper ran out of the room, leaving Ichigo alone. "Hey wait! Untie me!" he yelled, furiously. What the hell was wrong with her? How could he save his sister now that he was all bound up and useless? Ichigo's blood was boiling now: damn that stupid Hollow targeting his little sister, damn that useless Soul Reaper for putting his family in danger. He wouldn't stop struggling, he was going to get out of his own bedroom and protect his family, no matter what.

The Soul Reaper ran out into the corridor, glancing desperately at the staircase and the two other rooms along it, trying to locate the Hollow, as a tremendous wave of energy stopped her in her tracks. It was so powerful, she could hardly move, her dark hair swishing, black clothing billowing around her as it flowed out endlessly. "That _spirit pressure_ is amongst the strongest I've ever felt," she thought with difficulty, nausea building up, eyes wide, "How could I not have sensed it earlier?!" What could possibly be producing it? It had to be something powerful, something deadly...

As suddenly as it had appeared, the _spirit pressure _died down, releasing the Soul Reaper from its resistance. The Soul Reaper's hair swished down, obeying gravity again as her deep violet eyes widened at the sudden absence of pressure, mouth agape.

"Ichigo…"

Hearing pained moans, the Soul Reaper turned, coming face to face with a whimpering, limping Yuzu. Yuzu didn't notice the woman in front of her, however, because the Soul Reaper could not be seen by normal humans. The eleven year old girl heaved, every breath aching with pain, body bruised and weak. She limped towards her brother's room, almost in contact with the invisible Soul Reaper, collapsing forward as her legs gave way. The Soul Reaper swiveled to the side quickly as the brown-haired girl fell to the ground with a thud.

"Yuzu! What happened?" Ichigo gasped from inside, concern edging his voice roughly.

His younger sister struggled to sit up, eyes bruised and swollen as she looked at her brother, "I-Ichigo, Karin's been…" she struggled to continue, voice shaking. "Ichigo, you've gotta save her…" Yuzu said, pleading as the last of her energy was consumed and she collapsed again at the foot of the dark-headed Soul Reaper.

Ichigo felt his blood boil inside of him. He was struggling against the _Kido_ chains savagely now, desperate. How could he be so useless like this? Tied up on the floor while his sisters were hurt and being attacked? He growled viciously as the chains refused to yield, frustration and anger contorting his face. "Hey!" he snarled at the Soul Reaper, who was examining his unconscious sister, "You've gotta let me go!"

A scream rang loud and clear through the night.

The Soul Reaper stood up quickly, ignoring the girl at her feet. Someone was in danger and they needed her help. Within a flash, she was gone.

"Hey! I've gotta break free!" Desperation racked Ichigo's brain, thundered in his blood, and sped the pace of his heart. His muscles endlessly strained against invisible binds as he snapped at the ground with his teeth, ferociously attempting to escape. Slowly, struggling, Ichigo managed to bring two of his feet up under him so he was now balanced on top of them. The resistance of the _Kido _was searing, piercing into his skin, blood and mind. He fought against it, a picture of Yuzu's pleading face in his mind's eye.

The Soul Reaper flew down the stairs, her feet barely touching the steps, her clothing billowing behind her. Time was of the essence, as she very well knew, it stood in the way of life and death. Leaping into a room, and glimpsing through the broken mess of a wall, the Soul Reaper glimpsed what she had been searching for.

A giant looming beast stood on all fours in the center of the road, skin ghastly brown and scabby. From the distance, the Soul Reaper could spot a Hollow's mask on the monstrosity's head. In its right hand, a human was held tight, short black hair clearly discernible from afar.

"Put me down!" the human figure screeched at the creature that held her trapped. The Soul Reaper gritted her teeth and unsheathed her sword, ready to charge. Something tumbled down the stairs and she glanced at it, momentarily snapped out of her offensive stance. Noticing a ruffle of bright orange hair and a tangle of legs, she recognized the mess at the foot of the stairs to be that boy she left upstairs. "Stay out of it!" She warned him, eyes ablaze.

Ichigo, arms still fastened behind him, crawled towards the armed woman, legs struggling against her incantation. "Damn it," he muttered as his legs refused to move under him. The Soul Reaper glanced at him warily.


End file.
